Just because the L.A. River is “often regarded as little more than a flood-control channel” does not make it simply that. In fact, the river is much more complicated than this narrow definition begins to describe. The history and importance of the river could fill books (as it has) and so I will not attempt to tell its story crudely in a short blog post since I am no expert on the river. But after today’s important EPA ruling that the river be considered “traditional navigable waters”, I am optimistic that renewed interest in, and appreciation of, the L.A. River will bring good things to its banks and to the surrounding cities and neighborhoods. Specifically, this ruling means that the Clean Water Act must now be applied to our river.

Thanks are due to George Wolfe’s LA River Expedition in 2008 for helping to make this happen, and to Tom Andrews who took some amazing photos of the journey for LAist. It is definitely worth checking them out. Here are 2 of the 3 installments (I cannot seem to find Part 2, maybe you’ll have better luck…):

Here’s a plug for Friends of the L.A. River (FOLAR) who have been dedicated to “…protect[ing] and restor[ing] the natural and historic heritage of the Los Angeles River and its riparian habitat through inclusive planning, education and wise stewardship” since 1986.

I borrowed this photo of the Glendale Narrows section of the river. It was taken by Peter Bennett and I found it on his blog Citizen of the Planet:

If you want to experience the L.A. River for yourself, you can join a tour that Hidden LA has organized on July 18. Tickets are available here. The tour begins at the beautiful Los Angeles River Center and Gardens.